Larry DavidI'm Locked in a Parking Garage ...And I Can't Get Out!!!

3/21/2012 6:00 AM PDT BY TMZ STAFF

There's a reason Larry David plays himself on TV -- and he proved it Sunday in L.A. with a hilarious real-life "Curb Your Enthusiasm" moment ... getting himself trapped inside a parking garage ... and TMZ has obtained the footage.

The clip was shot inside a mall parking garage in Santa Monica -- Larry couldn't figure out how to make the parking gate thing open up ... so he hopped out of his Prius for help.

Thankfully, the girl in the car behind Larry showed him how to insert his parking ticket -- and the 64-year-old actor was home free.

You GOTTA check out the clip -- while playing the below song in the background -- it's pret-ty pret-ty pret-ty good ...